Chapter 4 first quarter

In April of the twelfth year of Jian'an, Liu Bei had a nightmare. After waking up, he was sweating, his mouth was open, and he couldn't speak a word.In the dark room, there was a heavy panting, Liu Bei leaned on the couch, no longer sleepy.Madam Mi, who was as white as jade, also woke up. She hugged her forty-seven-year-old husband with jade-like arms, leaned her face on his waist, and whispered, "Did you wake up? General Zuo?" Mrs. Mi admired Liu Bei and always called him "General Zuo". Big beads of Liu Bei's sweat fell on Madam Mi's face one by one. "Call Yuan Zhilai..." Liu Bei murmured, he pushed Mrs. Mi away, jumped off the bed, found the cloth shoes in the dark, ran out without putting them on, and shouted, "Yuan Zhi, call Yuan Zhilai !"

A bleary-eyed Xu Shu soon appeared in front of Liu Bei. He tied up his messy hair and asked, "What's the matter, General?" It has been five months since Xu Shu defected to Liu Bei. For Liu Bei, these five months are no different from the previous six years. The addition of Xu Shu is the addition of a friend who can talk and chat.For six years and five months, Jingzhou has always been peaceful. Only seven years after Jian'an, Cao Cao sent Xiahou Dun to attack Xinye. The battle was very simple.This year, when Cao Cao marched northward to Wuhuan, Liu Bei suggested that Liu Biao take the opportunity to raid Xuchang. Liu Biao waited for Ai Ai for a long time, but refused to agree. Later, his wife Mrs. Cai called out, and he ran away. "When will this kind of life end?" Liu Bei patted the new fat on his thigh, feeling very sad. In the past, he often rode horses and galloped. His legs were strong and vigorous. Now that he has been free for many years, not to mention the legs, the whole body They are also quite old.

"Yuanzhi, I had a strange dream, it was very ominous." Liu Bei let Xu Shu into the room, lit three candles, still in shock. "In the dream, I was sleeping on the bed, like a dead person... yes, I was dead, and fell asleep straight, suddenly a thunderbolt! The dead me fell from the bed to the steps! Steps, cough... ..." Liu Bei grimaced, and summoned up his courage to continue, "It's all white maggots, wriggling around, seeing me fall, they climbed up together, eating my flesh and drinking my blood... Sigh!" Liu Bei Holding his head in his hands, his voice seemed to be squeezed out of his throat, "Could it be that the years are flying by, and I am not only old, but also dying? Sigh..."

Liu Bei's dream lifted the spirit of Xu Shu who was originally ignorant! "The general is wrong!" Xu Shu laughed, "This dream is a good omen!" "Good luck?" Liu Bei opened his eyes wide. "The deceased, Bo Ye, Bo Tong Majesty; after death, he fell down the steps, it is 'Bo Xia', that is...'Your Majesty'!" Xu Shu dipped his finger in the tea and wrote the word "Your Majesty" on the case. , smiled and said, "maggots are a symbol of all people in the world. What you see in your dream means that the lord will take over the world with one body. I heard that those who are destined to ascend to the Ninth Five-Year Supreme will not only see one sign. General Zuo might as well Think about it, what happened before?" Xu Shu lowered his voice, "Have you ever encountered any abnormalities?"

Liu Bei was stunned: Your Majesty?Emperor?Looking at the two words that were gradually drying up on several sides, he seemed to see a five-foot-tall mulberry tree in the southeast corner of his childhood house, and saw its lush crown like a car cover used by a monarch when he went on tour.When passers-by saw it, they all said that noble people would come out of the tree.When he was a child, Liu Bei used to play under the tree. He pointed to the mulberry tree and said to his friends: "I will definitely ride in such a Yubao covered car!" His uncle heard this and pulled him back to the house. Pointing his nose and reprimanding him: "Boy, stop talking nonsense. Be careful of causing the disaster of destroying your family!" Could it be...that mulberry tree is the so-called abnormal form?Together with this thought, Liu Bei's heart boiled like boiling water. He suppressed his nervousness with great difficulty and did not tell Xu Shu about the past.

"Oh, Yuan Zhi is comforting me." Liu Bei scratched his head, "It has been more than 20 years since the Yellow Turban was wiped out. Haven’t been there? Gongsun Zan, Tao Qian, Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, and now Liu Biao, which one have I never been to? Today, nearly half a hundred years old, I still have no land, and the 5,000 troops stationed in Xinye are said to belong to me Commander, but as long as Liu Jingsheng says a word, there will be no one left... Alas, only Yunchang, Yide, and Zilong have suffered."——Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun are the three generals who followed Liu Bei loyally, "The three of them, no matter where they go, they will receive the gift of the general. Poorly follow me Liu Bei, wasting time and having nothing..." Speaking of this, Liu Bei was even more sad.

Xu Shu suddenly burst out laughing!Smiling, he slapped his knees and said, "The general is wrong again." He stared at Liu Bei and asked, "Do you really think that the generals have nothing to you? Land and soldiers are easy to change. Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shao, What a majesty it was back then! One word shocked the world; waved a hand, and flags and flags surged! The result? Yuan Shao was defeated in the first battle, and he didn’t even have a cup of sugar water before he died; The fat in his belly is used to light the lamp! My lord has something more precious than soldiers and land, and as long as it is used well, it is better than thousands of troops!"

An attitude full of confidence, exaggerated and strong words, showing off, and shuffling burdens are the usual methods used by talents in Longzhong.Xu Shu stayed in Longzhong for eight years. Although he kept his chivalrous style, he knew how to do it.Sure enough, Liu Bei, who had a disappointed face before, immediately cheered up when he heard what Xu Shu said.He moved the candlestick closer to Xu Shu, as if he wanted to see the expression of the person opposite to confirm what he said was true.Liu Bei asked: "From Yuanzhi's point of view, Gu," he unconsciously changed his name, "Some are...?"

"The name of the benevolent." Xu Shu replied word by word. That's right, unlike Cao Cao who is called "the hero of troubled times", Liu Bei has always been respected as the "lord of chaos".In the eyes of most people, he is benevolent and magnanimous. He rarely investigates the faults of others. Even if he is deceived, he will find reasons for the deceiver from another angle and forgive others.The same slender eyes, born on Cao Cao's face, are treacherous; born on Liu Bei's face, they appear very gentle, especially Liu Bei has a pair of fat ears with round earlobes, which is really a good fortune!Those who were enemies of Liu Bei called him a "big-eared thief" or "a mat-selling boy" when they met: Liu Bei was poor when he was young, and he made a living by weaving straw sandals and selling bamboo mats.This humble background and his habit of not arguing with others but liking dogs and horses, singing and dancing, beautiful clothes and other habits that he developed since childhood made Liu Bei very popular among the middle and lower classes: Guan Yu and Zhang Fei hit it off with him and shared weal and woe from then on; Zhao Yun, Gongsun Zan's subordinate, did not hesitate to come thousands of miles to vote; it is said that an assassin was hired to kill Liu Bei, and seeing his kind and tolerant attitude, he couldn't bear to do it!Whenever Liu Bei leaves one place, the people will always send him with the help of the old and the young; when Liu Bei arrives at another place, the people there will treat him as a relative and look up to him as a monarch.In fact, it was precisely because of Liu Bei's peculiar affinity that Xu Shu came to Xinye from Longzhong—most young people in Longzhong laughed at Xu Shu's choice. "Liu Bei is just a guest under Liu Biao. Yuan Zhi abandoned Liu Biao to serve Liu Bei. He is a servant of a servant, haha!" Those frivolous teenagers said this when they got together.Only Zhuge Liang understood Xu Shu, just as Xu Shu understood Zhuge Liang.

"With the name of a benevolent man, you have the capital to attract the world. A true hero depends not only on the present, but also on the future. Yuan Shao is less persevering, Liu Biao is less decisive, Liu Zhang is less severe, and Zhang Lu is less strategic. These people, It is because the necessary qualities are missing in the bones, like wood that is rotten from the inside out, and there is no possibility of salvation." Zhuge Liang once hugged his knees and looked in the direction of Xinye, while saying: "As for Liu Bei, he is quite strategic and capable. Strict, decisive and persistent enough, this is what he can survive for more than twenty years; what he lacks is not inside, but outside. Yuanzhi..." That day, Zhuge Liang's shining eyes fell on Xu Shu's face , "Liu Yuzhou lacks an arm. Guan, Zhang, and Zhao Yun are his right hands holding the sword. What about his left hand? Yuan Zhi might as well try to take care of the left hand that should wave the command flag and point the direction."

"Why doesn't Kong Ming go?" Xu Shu asked directly. Zhuge Liang couldn't help laughing. He looked at Shunying, who was wearing very loose clothes and was making a snow-white feather fan in her hand. The way she lowered her head and bit her teeth through the silk thread made Zhuge Liang feel warm and happy again. "I have to stay in Longzhong for a while longer," he said. "Why?" Xu Shu asked. Zhuge Liang smiled faintly: "Because I'm going to be a father." After hearing this, Shunying blushed, grabbed the white feather fan and slapped Zhuge Liang! You can't leave your pregnant wife at home. Once you go out to assist the impoverished Liu Bei, you will definitely experience unprecedented busyness, and your concern for your family will have to be reduced accordingly. Zhuge Liang must have this level of scruples, so he put it aside for the time being. Join Liu Bei's affairs.Xu Shu counted, and as of today, Shunying is nine or ten months pregnant, so mentioning Zhuge Liang to Liu Bei at this time will not embarrass her friends. Xu Shu said: "Since General Zuo is known as a benevolent man, why not use it to recruit talents?" "Recruiting talents? It's not easy!" Liu Bei waited for a long time, and when Xu Shu said this cliché, he couldn't help being angry and frustrated. I just wish I could give birth to a hand to hold talents in my arms. When I enter, I will join hands, and when I leave, I will be in the same car, one is more attentive than the other. Me?" Liu Bei spread his hands, "I guard the small Xinye County, don't Looking for it, I can’t even see a sage!” He paused at this point, and quickly added, “Fortunately, there is Yuan Zhi, otherwise... I’m like a blind man, I can’t see the outside situation at all. gone." Xu Shu chuckled. "I can't be your eyes." He walked to the window and pushed it open suddenly. The night wind poured into the room, and the candle light flickered and went out in an instant.Liu Bei just said, "Yuanzhi, you..." Then he stopped talking, and saw that the room without candlelight was filled with another kind of light, a kind of light falling from the distant and high night sky, like a gentle, clear The spring water flows slowly around.A few twinkling stars swam into the house, and upon closer inspection, it turned out to be fireflies dancing.Liu Bei took a few deep breaths, as if he wanted to take advantage of the bright night to get rid of the depression that had accumulated in his heart for a long time. "All the talents in the world are here." Xu Shu said softly while holding the window pane. "What?" Liu Bei didn't hear Xu Shu's words clearly. So Xu Shu said it again, he turned to look at Liu Bei, laughed and said: "All the talents in the world are here!" Liu Bei asked in a daze, "Here? Xinye?" Xu Shu shook his head and smiled, "Longzhong. General, since the Yellow Turban, the universe has been uneasy, and only Jingzhou has had no war for more than ten years. Talented people have come to Jingxiang to seek refuge. The scenery in Longzhong is very good, and there are Sima Decao, Pang Degong, etc. People talked about scriptures, Taoism, and current affairs, and gradually it became a treasured place." "Longzhong, Longzhong..." Liu Bei murmured, and then asked, "I go to Longzhong, how many days do I need to prepare rations?" Xu Shu laughed loudly, and he raised two fingers. "Two days?" "Hurry up, two hours." Xu Shu said. Two hours. Liu Bei has been in Jingzhou for more than six years, and he has been looking for someone all these years, someone who can make him shake the world; Zhuge Liang is also looking for someone who can give him the sky and make him as dazzling as the North Star; There was only two hours between Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang, but they had been away for more than six years. One is forty-seven years old. One is twenty-seven years old. "Yuan Zhi thought, who is the leader of the talents in Longzhong?" Liu Bei asked. Xu Shu said, "Zhuge Kongming." This is the first time Liu Bei heard the words "Zhuge Kongming". Even though he heard it for the first time, he felt that something hit him and made him feel a slight pain, like a very thin and fast sword coming towards him. It brushed against the arm, and as soon as the arm was cold, it was followed by light blood-colored stamens spreading out.Kong Ming...should be a handsome middle-aged man, Liu Bei thought: a man who is older and smarter than Xu Shu.He sketched the appearance of "Zhuge Kongming" in his heart: three long beards, fluttering like a fairy, holding a stag tail, and wearing a heavenly robe!A pair of eyes can see through everything in the world, and a pair of lips and teeth, counting the world's trends are like a treasure. "Zhuge Kongming?" Thinking of this, Liu Bei was in awe of "that person". "The surname is Zhuge, the name is Liang, and the style name is Kongming." "Zhuge Liang?" "good." "Oh, Zhuge Liang..." Liu Bei asked again, "Is he a Geng this year?" Xu Shu said, "Twenty-seven." "You're only in your twenties?" "Yes, twenty-seven years old." Liu Bei frowned, the excitement that spread up like a tide receded like a tide in an instant.Twenty-seven years old?How old is he, what kind of world can he see?When I wielded my two swords and led Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to fight on the battlefield and beheaded him, he was still a little doll in crotch pants!Liu Bei patted his head: "Oh, I think I'm crazy because I want to be wise, so when I hear a name, I feel as excited as I hear Jiang Taigong and Zhang Zifang; when I see a little light, I think the firefly is the moon. "General Zuo?" Seeing that Liu Bei was distracted, Xu Shu called out. "Oh," Liu Bei waved his hand lazily, "If you find time, invite him to Xinye for a walk." This lighthearted attitude was also expected by Xu Shu.It is not easy for a young man with a strange name to immediately attract General Zuo, Tinghou of Yicheng, and Liu Bei, the shepherd of Yuzhou; From Longzhong to Xinye. "Zhuge Liang, it's Crouching Dragon." Xu Shu thought about it and said, "Dragon, how can you come and go when you call it? General, this person can only wrong you to see him, and you can't wrong him to see you. Why? Considering it, general, I advise you to go to Longzhong to visit Zhuge Liang yourself." Xu Shu didn't say another word, he expressed the meaning very clearly.Didn't Liu Bei always hope to have a pair of eyes to see the world clearly, and an arm to point the country?What he needs is in the thatched cottage in Longzhong, behind the guqin, in front of the fragrance, and among the piles of documents, there is a young man holding a scroll in his hand.Thinking of Zhuge Liang, Xu Shu smiled slightly. "I'll go alone." Liu Bei said, "I'll see Zhuge Kongming in a few days! Yuan Zhi," Liu Bei suddenly smiled, looking at the bright night light, and asked, "What is Zhuge Liang doing at this moment? Just as you and I are talking about him He was... oh, reading? Haha, I never liked reading, haha." "Won't." "how?" Xu Shu smiled and said: "Zhuge Liang is not that diligent. Among his classmates, he is the least fond of reading. Whenever he gets a new book, he often flips through it and throws it away. It's just careless." "Oh?" Liu Bei was surprised by this answer. "Kong Ming said: rule the classics in a prosperous age, and judge the current affairs in a troubled world." Xu Shu smiled, looked outside at the dizzy moonlight, and said, "I guess, that person must be having a sweet dream." Unfortunately, Xu Shu guessed wrong this time. Zhuge Liang was just reading a book. Under the same moon, in Longzhong twenty miles away, Zhuge Liang held a volume of "Han Feizi" and read it in a room with no light at all!His fingers were twisted into the leather rope tied to the bamboo slips, and the rope drew red marks on his knuckles, but he didn't notice it at all!From the next room, there were groans and shouts that were louder and weaker. "Shunying...Shunying!" Zhuge Liang jumped up suddenly, and when he threw his hand away, the leather rope hooked his finger, making him unable to shake it off! "Shunying..." He shook his hands and rushed out of the study room! Next to the study is the couple's bedroom. "Mr. Zhuge, wait, just wait a little longer!" Before Zhuge Liang pushed the door open, an old woman with bloody hands came out holding a towel and a water basin, blocking him. "Shunying!" Zhuge Liang shouted outside the door, stomping his feet anxiously. "Kong Ming..." There was an angry voice from inside the door. "Shunying...Shunying!" "Kong Ming, Kong Ming..." Shunying gave birth for the first time, and the baby has been delayed for four hours! "Keep the child, I want...the child, keep it... ah!" With a cry, the room was quiet, as if he had stopped breathing.Zhuge Liang outside the door couldn't bear it any longer, and for a moment, the last face of his mother appeared in front of his eyes!A frail baby was carried out from behind Xueqing's bed sheet. The father stuffed him into his hand and said, "This is your third brother!" The mother was dying and tried to look at the child, but the father blocked her His father held back his tears and hugged her tightly, hugging her tightly in his arms.In the mother's slack eyes, the last gleam of happiness flowed out... "Keep the child, I want...the child"-damn it!Stupid, damn it! Zhuge Liang pushed the old woman away and rushed in! "Shunying!" Zhuge Liang roared. With a cry of "Wow", the little man fell to the ground. "Congratulations, Mr. Zhuge! Congratulations!" The women in the room congratulated repeatedly, carefully put the child into warm water to wash, and wrapped her in a snow-white blanket.The child cried louder and louder, as if holding back for a long time, and as if she wanted to remind her distraught father of her existence: "Wow, wow, wow..." "It's a daughter!" "What a beautiful girl!" "Look, how much she looks like a mother!" "No, more like Mr. Zhuge!" "Look at those eyes, tsk tsk, be good, be good..." These voices were all outside Zhuge Liang's world. At this moment, all his thoughts were on the limp woman on the couch. He brushed away her wet hair sticking to her forehead, and gently stroked her smiling eyes. , Smiling lips, suddenly resentful in my heart, he is almost as weak as her. "The child...was born upside down, with the feet facing outwards, so he can really toss..." Shunying said in a low voice, struggling, "A girl doll? Show me..." Zhuge Liang brought the child in his arms and put it in front of Shunying. Shunying raised her neck, touched the child's tender face with her lips, and said, "This little bastard...Kong Ming, next time," she said with a smile, "I'll give you another boy..." "There will be no next time!" Zhuge Liang said immediately. "Kong Ming..." Zhuge Liang hugged Shunying suddenly, his movements were light but tight. "There will be no next time," Zhuge Liang said again, "I don't want you to have children again." After hearing this, the midwives looked at each other in blank dismay.They thought Zhuge Liang was joking, but they didn't expect him to do what he said.This girl born on a full moon night is the only blood of Zhuge Liang and Shunying. Zhuge Liang named her Guo, Zhuge Guo.